"I think you manage things reflexively," she said. "And I'm telling you in advance that I'll notice and I'll say something and I'd rather we establish it now than have the conversation after."
Something shifted in Alexander's face. Not offense. Something more honest than offense.
"Your mother says the same thing," he said quietly.
"She's known you longer."
"Yes." He looked at his hands briefly. "She has."
Morrison came at ten. The assessment was thorough and Aria submitted to it with the patience she'd been practicing, answering questions honestly instead of optimistically, which was a habit Dr. Reeves had specifically asked her to work on.
Afterward, Morrison pulled Damien into the corridor for a separate conversation...protocol, he said, glancing at Alexander in a way that suggested it was not entirely protocol....and Alexander and Aria were left alone for the first time in several days.
